Burlington church bells ring out to remember the 10-year-old who never came home

It's a reminder of a tragic situation with no clear explanation.

At 4 p.m. on April 27, the bells of Kilbride United Church in Burlington will ring in remembrance of 10-year-old Marianne Schuett, who was abducted from outside the school on the corner of Kilbride and Panton Street 55 years ago.

In September 2021, a renewed search effort for Marianne was undertaken in Acton. That search resulted in a forensic dig that produced a small piece of white fabric that testing found human DNA on. Unfortunately, there was insufficient DNA to provide a full profile.

Gord Collins, retired Peel Regional Police investigator, along with retired RCMP inspector Linda Gillis Davidson will be leading the renewed search later this year in an area they are optimistic will lead to finding something.

It's just another little indicator that we're on the right path," said Collins.

Late last year a memorial bench was permanently installed outside Kilbride Public School as a reminder of Marianne.

Witnesses from 1967 remember seeing Marianne talking to a man in a late-model European vehicle, before getting in and being driven away. A blue shoe was found off Highway 25 in Speyside and identified by her mother as Marianne's. No other trace of her has been found.

Marianne's disappearance resulted in one of the largest searches in Ontario's history. An estimated 18,000 people were involved in attempts to find her.

A suspect was identified in the case decades earlier but that man committed suicide in 1991 prior to police being able to question him.

For more information, contact Gord Collins at 905-975-3600 or gcprp79@gmail.com